Nottingham, Jun 14: Jonny Bairstow smashed England’s second-fastest test century with some brutal hitting to lead his country to a record run chase at Trent Bridge and a five-wicket victory in the second test against New Zealand, clinching the series with one match to spare.
Set 299 to win in a little over two sessions on Day 5, England reached its target in 50 overs with Bairstow falling for 136 off 92 balls just before the victory was sealed.
Thrown together with England in a tough spot at 93-4 in the reply, Bairstow and captain Ben Stokes (75 not out) could have played for the draw to preserve the team’s 1-0 lead in the three-match series. Instead, they went on the attack following the attacking approach favored by new coach Brendon McCullum, a Kiwi and it blew the New Zealanders away.
In the first nine overs after tea, which England reached still needing 160 runs off a minimum 38 overs, Bairstow and Stokes hit 102 runs in a savage assault that saw the ball disappear to all corners of the ground that was sold out for the final day.
Bairstow dominated the strike, completing his century in 77 deliveries one ball more than Gilbert Jessop’s record for England set in 1902. Stokes was mostly an onlooker at the other end as he struggled with pain in the knee that meant it was a struggle to run between the wicket.
Bairstow eventually departed to a standing ovation after nicking Trent Boult behind, leaving Stokes and Ben Foakes (12 not out) to guide England to the winning post.
England had won one of its last 17 tests before the launch of a new era under Stokes and McCullum for this international summer. The team has won its first two tests under new leadership, with this Trent Bridge triumph backing up England’s five-wicket victory at Lord’s in the first match of the series against the reigning world test champions.
The previous highest successful chase in Nottingham came in 2004 when England’s 284-6 defeated New Zealand. There had been only two others aside above 200 from that. (AP)
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